Session XI.
2nd night, 3rd rule, state of Delirum, Night of Gluttony.

It is still raining. Ekikos and Chryseis move the victim under cover. The woman is very light, weighing less than 100 pounds. It's difficult but they manage to find a mostly dry spot to lay her down before Ekikos and Ludvik go out to try and find more clues.

From what they can tell, someone dragged the victim from the alley into the intersection, after she was attacked. The path from where the body lay to where she was attacked is easy to follow. After a fair bit of looking they find a bundle of cloth (about the size of a loaf of bread), hung up on the nearby razor vine. Ekikos recognizes the victim then as the woman he saw frequently in the Hyve. She was obsessed with keeping her baby, even after it died. The bundle, fortunately, contains only cloth.

I was quite lost and still following the attackers through the twisty streets of the Hive. Every so often I'd stop and leave a chalk-mark on a door or brick; but the rain threatened to wash my trail markers away. The attackers seem to be sticking to back alleyways, vacant lots and shanty towns. They dodge passer-bys and light sources, proving they want to pass unseen. From the way they move, I doubt they could see in the dark. At least - I hope they can't.

Every so often one turns around and checks his back trail. I press myself into the cold, wet ground and try to think like a rock. His gaze passes right over me. Fortunately he can't see me shivering.

Eventually the attackers come to a major thoroughfare. There's quite a bit of foot traffic about. The attackers, for once, don't double back; instead they wind their way thought the people. Those who accost the attackers for alms only receive 1/2 drawn swords and dangerous glares. It's then that I realize where I am - we're near the Chaos district and they're heading into the Butcher's Block, past a giant pig pen.

Rather than follow them inside, I try to double-back, using my surviving marks as a guide. Once I'm in site of my friends I make a b-line to Chryseis's leg and don't let go. We go back upstairs and try to clean up and dry out. It's very cold and hard to sleep, but somehow we manage.